Abstract
Using a large sample of male youth adjudicated for sexual crimes (N = 306), we examined the relationship between body disapproval, childhood sexual abuse, and sexually aggressive behaviors using four different linear regression models. In the models we explored different aspects of sexually aggressive behavior including victim age, level of sexual perpetration, use of threats, and total number of victims. We found a clinically significant statistical trend of the effect of body disapproval on victim age (p = .067). In addition, childhood sexual abuse was significantly related to all aspects of sexually aggressive behaviors (p < .05). Overall, 19.6 % of the sample youth self-reported at least clinically concerning levels of body disapproval. These clinically important results indicate that the incorporation of body disapproval treatment may be useful in the overall treatment of some male youth who have perpetrated sexual crimes. The prevalence of concerning body disapproval among this vulnerable population of youth makes further research on body disapproval treatment of the upmost importance.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bergen, R. K., & Bogle, K. A. (2000). Exploring the connection between pornography and sexual violence. Violence and Victims, 15(3), 227–234.
Bernstein, D. P., & Fink, L. (1998). Childhood trauma questionnaire: A retrospective self-report manual. San Antonio, TX: The Psychological Corporation.
Brown, A., & Burton, D. (2009). Exploring the overlap in juvenile sexual offending and general delinquency: Trauma, alcohol use, and masculine beliefs. Masters Thesis: Smith College School for Social Work. Northampton: Smith College Press.
Bucchianeri, M. M., Arikian, A. J., Hannan, P. J., Eisenberg, M. E., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2013). Body dissatisfaction from adolescence to young adulthood: Findings from a 10-year longitudinal study. Body Image, 10(1), 1–7.
Burton, D. (2000). Were adolescent sexual offenders children with sexual behavior problems? Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment, 12(1), 38–48.
Burton, D. (2003). Male adolescents: Sexual victimization and subsequent sexual abuse. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 20(3), 277–296.
Burton, D., Miller, D., & Shill, C. (2002). A social learning theory comparison of the sexual victimization of adolescent sexual offenders and nonsexual offending male delinquents. Child Abuse and Neglect, 26, 893–907.
Buss, D. (2007). The evolution of human mating. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 39(3), 502–512.
Dines, G., Jenson, R., & Russo, A. (2004). Pornography and media: Toward a more critical analysis. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Dittmar, H., & Howard, S. (2004). Thin-ideal internalization and social comparison tendency as moderators of media models’ impact on women’s body-focused anxiety. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 23(6), 768–791.
Farr, C., Brown, J., & Beckett, R. (2004). Ability to empathize and masculinity levels: Comparing male adolescent sex offenders with a normative sample of non-offending adolescents. Psychology, Crime and Law, 10(2), 155–167.
Feelgood, S., Cortoni, F., & Thompson, A. (2005). Sexual coping, general coping, and cognitive distortions in incarcerated rapists and child molesters. Journal of Sexual Aggression, 11, 157–170.
Ferraro, K. F. (1996). Women’s fear of victimization: Shadow of sexual assault? Social Forces, 75, 667–690.
Halliwell, E., Dittmar, H., & Orsborn, A. (2007). The effects of exposure to muscular male models among men: Exploring the moderating role of gym use and exercise motivation. Body Image, 4, 278–287.
Hill, M. S., & Fischer, A. R. (2001). Does entitlement mediate the link between masculinity and rape-related variables? Journal of Counseling Psychology, 48, 39–50.
Howell, J. (1998). Youth gangs: An overview. Tallahassee: Juvenile Justice Bulletin, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. U.S. Department of Justice.
Howell, D. C. (2007). Statistical methods for psychology (6th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.
Hunter, J. (2004). Developmental pathways in youth sexual aggression and delinquency: Risk factors and mediators. Journal of Family Violence, 19(4), 233–242.
Joshi, R., Herman, C., & Polivy, J. (2004). Self-enhancing effects of exposure to thin-body images. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 35(3), 333–341.
Kennedy, P. (2003). A guide to econometrics. Cambridge: MIT press.
Kilbourne, J. (1999). Can’t buy my love. New York, NY: Touchstone.
Lee, D. G., & Olender, M. B. (1992). Working with juvenile sex offenders in foster care. International Journal of Family Care, 4, 63–75.
Leit, R., Pope, M., & Gray, J. (1999). Cultural expectations of muscularity in men: The evolution of playgirl centerfolds. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 29, 90–93.
Messerschmidt, J. W. (2000). Becoming “real men” adolescent masculinity challenges and sexual violence. Men and Masculinities, 2(3), 286–307.
Millon, T. (1993). Millon adolescent clinical inventory: Manual. Minneapolis, MN: National Computer Systems.
Millon, T., & Davis, R. (1996). Disorders of personality: DSM-IV and beyond (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Wiley.
Miranda, A., & Corcoran, C. (2000). Comparison of perpetration characteristics between male juvenile and adult sexual offenders: Preliminary results. Sexual Abuse: Journal of Research and Treatment, 12(3), 179–188.
Morgan, J. (2008). The invisible man: A self-help guide for men with eating disorders, compulsive exercise, and bigorexia. New York, NY: Routledge.
O’Neil, J. M., Good, G. E., & Holmes, S. (1995). Fifteen years of theory and research on men’s gender role conflict: New paradigms for empirical research. In R. Levant & W. Pollack (Eds.), A new psychology of men (pp. 164–206). New York, NY: Basic Books.
Puzzanchera, C., Adams, B., & Sickmund, M. (2010). Juvenile court statistics 2006–2007. Washington, DC: United States Office of Juvenile Justice and Prevention.
Rich, P. (2011). Understanding, assessing and rehabilitating juvenile sexual offenders. New York, NY: Wiley.
Ryan, G., Leversee, T. F., & Lane, S. (2011). Juvenile sexual offending: Causes, consequences, and correction. New York, NY: Wiley.
Ryan, G., Miyoshi, T. J., Metzner, J. L., Krugman, R. D., & Fryer, G. E. (1996). Trends in a national sample of sexually abusive youths. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 35(1), 17–25.
Schwartz, J. P., & Tylka, T. L. (2008). Exploring entitlement as a moderator and mediator of the relationship between masculine gender role conflict and men’s body esteem. Psychology of Men and Masculinity, 9(2), 67–81.
Snyder, H., & Sickmond, M. (1999). Juvenile offenders and victims: 1999 national report. Washington, DC: National Center for Juvenile Justice.
Spitzer, B., Henderson, K., & Zivian, M. (1999). Gender differences in population versus media body sizes: A comparison over four decades. Sex Roles, 40(7–8), 545–556.
StataCorp. (2013). Stata Statistical Software: Release 13. College Station, TX: StataCorp LP.
Stenson, P., & Anderson, C. (1987). Treating juvenile sex offenders & preventing the cycle of abuse. Journal of Child Care, 3, 91–102.
Tabachnick, B. G., & Fidell, L. S. (2007). Using multivariate statistics (5th ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Thompson, J. K., & Cafri, G. (2007). The muscular ideal: Psychological, social, and medical perspectives. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Ward, T., & Beech, A. (2006). An integrated theory of sexual offending. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 11(1), 44–63.
Watkins, B., & Bentovim, A. (1992). The sexual abuse of male children and adolescents: A review of current research. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 33, 197–248.
Worling, J., & Curwen, T. (2000). Adolescent sexual offender recidivism: Success of specialized treatment and implications for risk prediction. Child Abuse and Neglect, 24(7), 965–982.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
O’Brien, J.E., Burton, D.L. & Li, W. Body Disapproval Among Adolescent Male Sexual Offenders: Prevalence and Links to Treatment. Child Adolesc Soc Work J 33, 39–46 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-015-0400-x
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-015-0400-x